Nutrition
For something that should be so simple and pleasurable, the subject of food gets complicated! Diet books, interpretatiosn of the latest study, the marketing efforts of large food companies and manufacturers of supplements make deciding what to eat very confusing. Here are some recommendations that should help cut through the clutter.
Eat Real Food
It is worth it to spend a few more minutes cooking your own food.
If you do buy packaged food be sure you are able to read and understand what is in the ingredient list. The shorter the ingredient list, the better.
Buy most of your food from the produce section of your local grocery store. Fruits and vegetables are low in calories and are loaded with the kind of nutrition your body needs to stay healthy. Your next stop should be to buy whole grains such as quinoa, barley, steel cut oats and 100% whole grain breads and cereals.
Consider Vegetables
Seriously consider adopting a plant based diet. Protein from animal sources are often high in saturated fat, calories, hormones, antibiotics, mercury and the list goes on. Currently, Americans eat more than twice the amount of protein they need. Your protein doesn’t need to come from animals.
- A diet high in animal food has a strong link to heart disease and cancer, the two leading causes of death in the United States. See www.pmri.org and www.pcrm.org.
- According to a paper written by the by the United Nations, animal agriculture contributes more to global warming than transportation. Animal agriculture or factory farms, pollute our water, land, and air and are a big contributor to green house gasses. See www.nrdc.org.
- The treatment of food animals in factory farms is inredibley inhumane. Check out what The Humane Society of the United States is doing to end the cruel treatment of these animals.